Steve: I just finished stripping the hull of my Redfish Silver, and I know exactly what you are talking about. I found those strips to be the hardest of all so far. I did a variety of things to make the strips come together including planing the ends before installing them permanently (I am using stapleless construction). Many times, I just ran the strip over the center, and then cut it down the centerline before putting the opposing strip on. (To prevent a cavity from remaining using this technique, you must be sure to run another strip on top so that you have solid wood everywhere above the surface of the keel line.) I found that by heating the strip with a heat gun before installation, I could put a twist in it which made final placement easier.

I think these strips are most challenging because it is so difficult to envision how the ends of the strips should be twisted and thinned to come together on the keel line. I found that adding strips alternately from side to side was essential to making things work. Once you get to the "football" section, things get easier.

One last comment - I did foresee this problem coming up, and as a result, I used four "cheater" or "gapper" strips per side, but I also used 1/2 inch strips which will make a difference. Otherwise, it is possible to end up with the strips coming together at the keel line before they come together at the ends.

Good Luck, feel free to contact me if you have more questions or this explanation is not clear.

Rich Bechtold